Open Plan Kitchen with Recessed Handles and Two Pack finish

The plan was to open up this 1890s farmhouse kitchen and bring in more light.

Adelaide couple Mike and Shirley decided to have a new kitchen built in 2016 after having replaced both end walls of their Kitchen / Dining / Family room with full width glass doors. The plan from the beginning was to open the 1890s farmhouse up and bring more light in. The kitchen dining room straddles the width of their house where replacing the small 19th century windows with sliding stacker doors created a free flowing inside outside space for their family living and entertainment.

The farmhouse was purchased in 1989 where soon after Mike and Shirley renovated their Bathroom and then their Kitchen to better accommodate their young family. Compass Kitchens did this first Kitchen Renovation in the mid 90s which was done then, using a solid timber in a Colonial Style, where this served Mike and Shirley well for more than 25 years.

Industrial Designer Mike said “By opening up the kitchen space we had an opportunity to address a lack of storage; however by opening out the end walls, this had also given the room a much more modern look and so we felt the Colonial look didn’t quite work anymore. We decided that because this is our forever home we should do justice to the room and our lives by having another bespoke kitchen made." and "We approached several well-known Adelaide kitchen manufacturers but found that there was a marked difference in the price and quality between firms as well as a limitation to any customization available to us from their standard solutions. In the end we went back to Compass Kitchens and asked Malcolm if he would be prepared to work with us again. For our first kitchen Malcolm came to us with helpful suggestions and innovative solutions rather than making excuses as to why not, and again with this latest project his professional Bespoke approach was exactly the same.”

Mike and Shirley’s taste favors the Art Deco use of bold Harmonious colors and clean lines but with a Modern take. The design brief was quite specific, wanting a Kitchen with;

Very clean lines,

Colors that reflect the local environment,

No un-necessary decorative features,

Definitely no handles, and

As mouse and insect proof as possible.

They first used their time to work through all the details of the design and tried out many different configurations until they were satisfied with the design’s look and functionality. Shirley was adamant that there were to be no high cupboards over the main work surfaces; “I don’t want anything to interrupt the views outside and I want the kitchen to blend in with this and not to stand out.” The main workbench includes a much used breakfast bar with Waterfall Ends, even the kitchen sink tap was thought through and they selected a black Finish so to blend into the benchtop and reduce its visual impact.

Mike wrote to Houzz on completion that “The result throughout, is a kitchen of outstanding beauty that blends into the environment and invites participation and welcomes fun. Malcolm completely signed up to the whole concept resolvingtechnical problems and making suggestions for example the backlighting in the breakfast alcove and the set back finger grips for the drawers. and"When we sat down with Malcolm to discuss his involvement he told us he thought our kitchen would be timeless because the design and our choice of colors did not follow present design trends and colour, while using the best of today’s technology with quality materials and craftsmanship and style applied through the lens of our personal taste.”

For the technology used for example, we used modern Blum fittings throughout and for the 2 high cupboards these doors are motorized for ease of access. The drawers throughout are all full extension with soft close. The use of the Caesarstone Emperadoro a dark chocolate colour with lighter marbling flecks gives a warm contrasting statement and is combined with a two pack British Paints colour Honey Oat and Harmoniously accented with the British Paints colour Mossy Road for kickboards, Bar back panel and the ceiling shadow line. The combination reflects the views from outside while creating a warm inviting space within. At night with the down lights on, the space has a very smooth warm inviting feel.

Of course a bespoke beautiful kitchen must have the right appliances so a Smeg 60 cm double catalytic oven, a Smeg 90cm low profile cooktop and a built-in Smeg 25L convention microwave were selected. Mike and Shirley chose a Sirius 90cm canopy range hood here because we could install the extraction fan and motor into the roof space making it quite to operate; even on the high settings. They selected a Fully Integrated Bosch dishwasher where we continued the line of the recessed handles, along with an LG side by side fridge freezer and a Delongi 42 bottle wine fridge to complete this kitchen’s well appointed appliances.

Both Mike and Shirley thoroughly enjoy cooking and gourmet meals are the norm at dinner-time. They have decided to call this kitchen style what it is; being their “Modern Aussie Country Kitchen with a nod to Art Deco” with itbringing this lovely old Country farmhouse forward in time from the 1890’s and into the modern comforts of the 21st century.

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Compass Kitchens

We service all suburbs ranging from the Inner Adelaide districts and radiating out to the Eastern, Western and Southern suburbs as well as our service extending throughout the Adelaide Hills and Fleurieu Peninsula including Goolwa to Victor Harbor to Normanville & Yankalilla.

Come home to a beautiful functional new kitchen renovation by Compass Kitchens.